Mad Hatter

The
September 20, Ss > |

A Douglas College Newslette

 

CHOOSING A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE

ome people just don’t know
how to relax.

When tension creeps into their
day, they automatically reach for
a cigarette or an alcoholic drink.
Yet what appears a quick fix for
what ails them is really unhealthy
behavior. ,

Instead of reaching for a
cigarette, unwind with a quiet
reading session, or turn on the
stereo to some quiet music, sug-
gests health specialist Nancy
Hawthorne. She teaches in a
program called Healthstyles, at
Douglas College in New
Westminster.

The Healthstyles program, for
men and women of all ages, as-
sists people in making lifestyle
choices for healthy living. The
program has been endorsed by
the B.C. College of Family
Physicians.

Taught by health specialists
Denise Hawthorne and Nancy
Yurkovich, Healthstyles focuses
on wellness, rather than illness.
And it’s delivered with a "posi-
tive, upbeat approach," Haw-
thorne says.

The health specialists say that
people who want to care for them-
selves take on positive behaviors,
such as eating right, exercising or
finding alternatives to the bottle
when feeling pressure.

"That's very different than
doing things that are self-destruc-
tive, falling apart, and then going
in and calling for help,"
Yurkovich says.

The key elements of
Healthstyles are self-awareness,
self-responsibility and an holistic
approach to health.

The workshop covers the basics
of good health, focusing on four
basic healthstyle categories; nutri-
tion, stress management, physical
activity, and habits—including the
use of nicotine, alcohol and caf-
feine.

Once participants are equipped
with the facts, the next step is
learning how to change unheal-
thy habits and take on positive be-
haviors such as eating right, quit-
ting smoking and exercising.

But they are encouraged to be
specific in their goals. If the
desire to is "get more exercise,"
participants are urged to clearly
commit themselves to a plan of
action, such as agreeing to go to
the gym three times a week.

Some people, “have the notion
that things just fly in and get us,
and we’re not part of it,"
Yurkovich says.

But the health specialists point
out that there are choices to be
made.

Participants find patterns in
their own behavior and choose
options for desirable change.
Each person makes out a contract
to him or herself that outlines
specific and realistic goals.

There is no time limit on suc-
cess--they are learning life-long
good habits.

The Healthstyles program is not
a quick cure. "Our idea is not to
offer candy coated solutions,"
Yurkovich says. “Behavioral
change is complex, it does take
time."

"The up side of it is feeling
more in control, feeling that we
have a part in our own good
health," she adds.

Hawthorne and Yurkovich have
a Mini-Healthstyles workshop
scheduled for Saturday, Septem-
ber 24 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. As
well, a Healthstyles Weekend is
set for Friday, Saturday and Sun-
day, October 14 - 16, with follow-
up on Friday, November 18. The
Friday evening session is from 7 -
9:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sun-
day sessions are from 9 a.m. to 4

p-m.

Another program is the
Healthstyles Series, running for
eight weeks, with each session
about two hours. Instructed by
Rose Marie Fournier, community
programmer for the Health
Education Centre at Douglas Col-
lege, the series is scheduled for
Wednesdays, October 5 to
November 23, from 10:00 to 11:45
a.m.

Call Douglas College at 520-
5476 for more information.